Arc 2: Canon 11: Patricide [PG13, DE, Medium]

[Zou ۞]

Name: [New Arc 2: Canon 11 - Patricide]

Participants: [Shinigami only, 3 RPCs maximum]

Location: [Soul Society, Houen's castle]

Difficulty Level: [Medium]

Setting: [DE]

Plotline: [One might be wondering why a bunch of Shinigami are in Central 46 member Houen Karakiri's enormous, Victorian style castle, located in East Rukongai District #1, an extremely affluent area of mansions, gaudy expenses, and decadence. Most Central 46 members, for starters, live in the Central 46 quarters provided by the Gotei Thirteen. Houen, however, has always had the good luck of being obscenely wealthy from the day in which he was born, and is now reaping the benefits of living in his own giant castle, where his wedding to a woman named Kikyo Samehada will be taking place. It's certain to be an extremely large scale event, with hundreds if not thousands of guests. Understanding yet? Shinigami have been allocated to this wedding as guards, just in case some evil threat (of which there are quite many lately) attempts to find its way into the wedding to cause massive death. Unfortunately, there aren't many to spare because of a war and all that, but a few seated officers will do just fine.]

Estimated Enemy Strength: [Class 6-3, with one exception]

Estimated Time Until Completion: [3-4 pages]

Starts: [Now]

Special Conditions: [Will most probably be 75% social. This canon will be run by Kento.]

[Keji Sokudo]

This again. Keji was tired of guard duty. He had been shuffled around the seireitei for months now, filling obscure guard duties and odd jobs that none of the "powerful" shinigami were available for. It was just his luck. Of course, he probably brought this upon himself. Its not my fault I need to hide my true potential from them. but that was just rationalizing. Keji was kept in these low profile positions because he was hiding, not just from the enemy but from a good portion of the shinigami as well. His powers were his, and he was certain that if some of the science division found out about his true abilities he would be shipped off somewhere and studied. That could not be allowed to happen.

Keji snapped out of his daze as he felt someone else approaching the extravagant manor he was supposed to protect this eavining, their footsteps stirring up whispers in the fog of shadow that clung to the ground in between the imposing buildings. This was, if not by design, greatly to Keji's fortune. The tall buildings in this part of the Seireitei caused most of the roads to be covered in a good amount of shadow almost any time but noon.

He was wandering again, the footsteps drawing closer to the entrance of the manor where his Gigai stood, looking every inch a dedicated, if bored, guardsman. He had been following the owner of the footsteps for about three blocks now, if they were an aquantance of Keji's or very well attuned to the reishi around them, they would feel his presence like a pair of watching eyes permeating the area, but perhaps they were unaware, if they did know, they showed no sign.

The time had come, keji slipped control back to his Gigai and prepared to meet the first of his allies in this most mundane of guard duties. He turned to face them, his gaze brushing past them as if his eyes did not see, "Hello... Lets keep this party safe, shall we?"


Current Reiatsu 5600/5600
Passive Techique: Suterareta Jensei is covering the area with shadow

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats}Strength - [50] Points

Speed - [200] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [200] Points (600)

Reiatsu Strength - [200] Points (600)

Light Aura - [75] Points

Dark Aura - [25] Points

Instinct - [150] Points

Senses [100] Points

Energy sensory - [100] Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1000] Points



[Memory] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Mental Incantation] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Battle Analysis] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Weapon: Swords:] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Stealth] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Learning] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Kidou] Level 2 (2 SKP)

[Himitsu Kasumi'Oji]

Whistles the Frank SInatra's catchy tune of New York, New York. What wouldn't he do to be in New York right now? The castle behind him was impressive, of course, but when he learned he was assigned to be a guard at a noble's wedding, he imagined a larger scale of beauty that the New York skyline covered perfectly. Or maybe a breath-taking grassy field between two towering mountains that can't quite be compared to any man-made structures. Yet even though he wasn't treated with those scenes he traveled the human world whenever he got the chance to hunt for, the setting was definitely impressive. And as Himitsu drew closer, its appearance grew even more magnificent. Maybe it wasn't so bad for a wedding, though it couldn't possible compare to New York.

The Shinigami pulled his sealed Zanpakuto half-way out of its scabbard as he walked to his assigned starting position just to glimpse the flawless metal that peered back at him. Karaitami, his Zanpakuto Spirit, had just recently started speaking out more, and Himitsu couldn't help but get excited every time that she did. Her consistent silence can be beyond aggravating at times but Himitsu was more than capable of hiding his emotions behind a sometimes empty smile. He was so convincing that he even got close to tricking himself into believing he was happy and care-free, but not quite close enough.

As Himitsu approached the designated meeting spot, he let his whistling fade into a slightly awkward silence that was somewhat diminished by the upward curve of his lips that never seemed to droop. There was already another familiar man there waiting, a superior officer to Himitsu. Seeing a Vice Captain that he had only caught a few glimpses of in officer meetings in Seireitei surprised the 4th seat. Considering that stronger people were assigned a mere guard mission for a seemingly harmful wedding, Himitsu felt like there was something more behind the event. Was there really such a high expectation for appearances of enemy Arrancar, hollows, or even Quincy?

Either way, Himitsu was excited. The last time he'd been in real combat was against that insanely powerful Segunda Espada who's cruelty was the only reason the Shinigami survived the encounter. And since then, Himitsu found that he had more drive and more resolve than ever before that pushed him to grow as much as he can in strength. He wanted their next encounter to go differently, and was going to be ready this time. His smile was replaced by a grave, determined frown for just a moment before returning. This was not the time to dwell on such thoughts, and his ally's words where just the thing he needed to bring Himitsu back to reality. "At the same time, though, let's hope for just a bit of fun." Being a member of the 10th squad, Himitsu was naturally inclined to enjoy combat a bit more than others, as long as the fight didn't get out of hand.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats and Skills}

Stats

Strength - [75] Points

Speed - [200] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [175] (218) Points

Reiatsu Strength - [275] (343) Points

Light Aura - [80] Points

Dark Aura - [20] Points

Instinct - [100] (75) Points

Senses - [100] (75) Points

Energy sensory - [75] (56) Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1000] Points

Abilities

• [Mental Incantation] {2}
  
  
• [Calm Mind] {2}
  
  
• [Battle Analysis] {2}
  
  
• [Illusion Resist] {2}
  
  
• [Learning] {2}
  
  
• [Weapons: Swords] {1}
  
  
• [Battle Focus] {2}
  

[Raion Souretsu]

“WHAT!? I HAVE A HALF-BROTHER!?”

The outburst was one that would certainly draw attention, but once they fell on the large figure leaning against one of the walls, his nose buried in an ever-popular yet untrustworthy magazine, eyes would be rolled and general sniffs of disdain would be aimed in the general direction. Raion, lost in the article he was reading, didn't even notice the looks, and instead continued to skim through the words, eyes jumping from text to images and back to the text as he confirmed what the magazine in his hands was telling him. It was the latest issue of Soul Food, a series of articles that the Captain had been following almost religiously, getting each new issue the day it came out and believing just about every word that was written within it. He was a goat-man? Mutton was banned for the day, until someone convinced the lion that it was probably just a typo. That, and Raion had gotten hungry. Okusa and Oreos? Oh, the shame! The list just went on and on.

Of course, many would wonder what Raion was doing, reading a magazine like that when he was in the middle of a noble's manor. Normally, the lion's response would be “why not?” because what was wrong with sitting in a foyer reading a magazine? People did it at waiting rooms and such all the time—oh god no, waiting rooms. Midway through a sentence he was reading, Raion froze. Waiting rooms were the worst; they were the torturous wait before visiting the doctor, who would tell you that you needed to go on a diet and eat less red meat and stop drinking altogether. Doctors were mean! Quickly stuffing the magazine down into a pocket sewn into the inside of his Shinigami robe, Raion looked around to make sure that there were no doctors in the crowd; surely they'd have noticed his waiting room behavior, and acted on it while his guard was down, but who could be too sure?

Back on topic, the question was simple: what was Raion doing in a noble's manor period, let alone lounging about reading magazines? In truth, he was there on a mission, a super special one. There was to be a wedding between the noble whose name the lion had quickly forgotten and some lady friend he had met, probably in one of the Rukongai taverns. Bars were the best place to meet women, from Raion's experience, and you found the most exciting and adventurous ones there. But anyway, they were getting married, and there was a big wedding party and all sorts of pizazz, and Raion had signed up to be on the guest list. At least, that's why he thought he was there; why else would he be at the wedding? Maybe he was there to be the best man again; the lion had been the best man at another wedding before, between his little fox gal Amaya and her hus—wait, had that actually happened? Raion resolved to ask Amaya later to confirm; he had been a little drunk at the time, so his memory was a bit fuzzy.

Truth be told, Raion was actually supposed to be there on guard duty. There had been several recent invasions and other negative events of late that had caused lots of destruction—more so than Raion's average attempt at carpentry, surprisingly; he had yet to corner one of those tricky nails that kept jumping out of the way so he hit his own fingers with the hammer—and as a result there was more than a little worry that something untoward could happen during what was supposed to be a happy event, a celebration amidst the suffering to lift spirits and raise morale. Shinigami had been assigned to the wedding as guardians, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious and preventing additional damage to ruin such a lovely occasion.

Of course, Raion being Raion meant that he didn't take his job very seriously, and as a result he had actually forgotten what he was supposed to be doing at the wedding. Ring bearer? A search of his person had revealed no ring, though that could have simply been lost, so he wasn't the ring bearer. He had always wanted to be a ring bearer, but people were no fun and said he wasn't cute and adorable enough, like a child was. Pfft, children were loud and liked to tug at your hair and didn't listen at all. Raion was told at his rejection that he did a good imitation of a child's pout at least, though the woman who had declined him had given him a strange look as though he were some kind of big talking animal—oh wait, he was. Well, no matter, he wasn't the ring bearer. He hadn't been the officiator, or the Father of The Bride, or even a bridesmaid—it sounded like fun, even if it was a girl's position. Plus, who could resist a chance to “peek in” on the bride before she became all boring and conservative after being married?

Well whatever he was supposed to be doing, Raion figured someone would tell him, so for the moment he was just relaxing. The lion offhandedly grabbed the large jug of sake that always sat at his hip, taking a long pull from the opening before replacing the cork and looking around. Okay, so maybe you weren't supposed to get tipsy until after the wedding, but he couldn't help himself; it was like he was more prone to intoxication than others. Certainly it had nothing to do with the small cask he had gone through a few hours earlier, or the jug he had refilled twice since then. Anyway, he was simply relaxing in the front lobby, keeping an eye on the guests and waiting for someone to approach him and let him know where he was needed when the wedding started. Maybe one of the other Shinigami that were invited to the wedding would tell him...

SPOILER: Click to show

{Raion's Stats}Strength - [200] Points

Speed - [300] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [(200 x 2) = 400] Points

Reiatsu Strength - [(400 x 2) = 800] Points

Light Aura - [100] Points

Dark Aura - [0] Points

Instinct - [(100 x 0.5) = 50] Points

Senses [(100 x 0.5) = 50] Points

Energy sensory - [(100 x 0.5) = 50] Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1400] Points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Raion's Skills}

• [Pain Tolerance] 2
  
  
• [Charisma] 3
  
  
• [Battle Abilities - Kido] 3
  
  
• [Other (Mental Ability) - Alcohol Tolerance] 2
  
  
• [Analyzing] 3
  
  
• [Other (Misc) - Low-Light Vision] 2
  
  
• [Mental Incantation] 2

(OOC: Minor edit, forgot Raion had gotten and spent a SKP recently, and hadn't updated it to the code I use. xD)

[Kento Waffles]

OOC: Alrighty, guys. Starting this bitchin' canon soon. Make sure you can post consistently.

[Kento Waffles]

SPOILER: Click to show

{Here's my pretentious music. Play it.}

"As always, Lord Karakiri, you have excellent taste both in music and wine," A gentleman said on that occasion, as one of those present at the wedding; He was a man in a black suit and red tie, with gold buttons decorating, and what could be described by women only as the most devilishly good looking, handsome face in the Soul Society. "You are a true gentleman." This was Sozen Kuchiki, the Captain of Squad 6, attending the wedding not as a guard but as a guest, for in addition to being a Captain, he was also the Esteemed Head of the Noble Kuchiki Family, and was obviously one of the first on the guest list of such aristocrats as Houen Karakiri, with whom he sat in a circle of lounge chairs of nobles, holding glasses of wine and toasting to whatever was the most recent and trendy decadence.

"Your compliment pleases me to no end, Lord Kuchiki," Houen Karakiri said. "As always, you are a true delight. One a Lord would always keep in his company." He was dressed in a fine white tuxedo, and possessed golden hair in a bowl cut, with fabulous golden eyes, and perhaps the most gaudy and expensive outfit of all. He lived up to his reputation of throwing enormous parties, for his enormous ball room was full of thousands, and was large enough to accommodate them comfortably, and still leave room for the isle, chairs, and stage where the wedding would take place, surrounded by the finest of food and wine. The three Soul Reapers present on guard duty might feel just a little out of place in such an event as this, with its gaudy music playing and the aristocrats, the judgmentals, and the high end of society all playing their game of politics in this house of cards.

"Excuse me," Karakiri apologized. "It is almost time for my beautiful bride to appear, and a Lord would not have any miscreant indignation befall his lovely lady's most important day. I must see to it that all is well." He stood up and began roaming the party, looking around to ensure that indeed, all was well, and there were no problems which would at the last second present themselves and transfigure the wedding into some sort of utter disaster. So, there he was, probably reflected in the eyes of all who were there to guard not only the wedding, but the man himself. He was checking the lavish fountains of wine (there were fountains of wine), the food tables, the wedding cake, the feeling of the guests, and more and more and even more things. Such a busy man.

"Truly, one must wonder how they manage it," a voice said next to Keji Sokudo. "To consume so much in so little time is a skill." The voice was deep, but flat, calm, and controlled. It was bordering on monotone, and belonged to a smiling speaker with observant brown eyes. The speaker had loosely combed brown hair, rectangular spectacles, and a black tuxedo with a red rose on the front pocket, and a red tie. The man was barely shorter than Keji was, though he had more broad and well rounded shoulders and chest, and had a sort of commanding presence. Who he was would not be immediately clear just by seeing the face, and no family crest or marking was on him that could be discerned by the ordinary commoner, leaving his identity a mystery, though at least Keji now had someone to converse with.

"Is all well?" Karakiri asked, appearing next to Himitsu, the fourth seat who must surely be overwhelmed not only by that there were two Captains present at this wedding (at the very least), but that it had so many people, so much food and wine, and such complete waste and luxury all in one. Karakiri, the obvious host, and also the man getting married, had actually come to Himitsu to ask if all was well. "Have you any requests? A Lord must always maintain the absolute greatest of pleasuring feelings in his guests." he insisted, concerned, as if Himitsu's wants and needs were the only ones in the world that mattered. His docile, elegant smile came with a very genuine and rather frank tone, assuring Himitsu of his importance no matter how new or recent their acquaintances were.

"You can certainly drink a lot, can't you?" a voice said next to Raion as well. Unlike the first two to greet the other Soul Reapers, who were male, this one was female, and belonged to a young woman in her very late teens with black hair held in a bun, full red lips, and dazzling gray eyes. She was dressed in a very conservative outfit, a red blazer with black buttons and an elegant skirt of a complimentary color. She had a slender form, but her bony, almost skeletal knuckles on her thin hands were covered in scratches and one or two bruises, indicating that she punched a great deal. "What ever will you do if you suddenly die of a liver failure?" she asked him.

[Keji Sokudo]

[OOC: put me last in the posting order, I am about to be out of town for 2 days, and hopefully Ill be back before it gets back to me.]

[Himitsu Kasumi'Oji]

Himitsu grew slightly bored watching the large crowd of aristocrats enjoying the wedding. There were many impressive sights, including a giant, beautiful wedding cake, rows and rows of tables topped with delicious treats, including a full table dictated purely to Soul Foods and Oreos, and, finally, a large fountain of... wine? Himitsu was tempted to walk by and dip a glass into the little pond of alcohol at the base of the fountain. It was just an amusing thought that made the smile on his face just a little more genuine that it had been previously. But, truth be told, he was bored. There were several snobby nobles enjoying the wedding with their big heads and all, but Himitsu was going to ignore those snotty lords and ladies. He heard that the host was a good man, and that could only be reinforced by the fact that he recently spied him talking to the head of the Kuchiki house, Sozen.

Himitsu hadn't talked to Sozen since the Captain had first introduced him to Soul Society and set the young man on the path to becoming a Shinigami. Since he enrolled in Shino academy, he had been bouncing between classes and training. There was no spot in his schedule to meet with the Kuchiki. And after he had finally joined Squad 10 and worked his way up into the position of 4th seat, he was definitely way to busy to seek Sozen's company. Now that he was the Fourth Seat, though, he might finally have an opportunity to have a word with the Captain. But this setting just wouldn't do. Himitsu was a guard and was definitely not welcome to converse with guests. It bothered him how some people had that mentality, but he wasn't about to disturb the wedding by leaving his post. Himitsu's mind had been wandering for some time now and he hadn't noticed the host of the wedding, as well as the groom, approaching him from his side. When the man spoke, focus returned to his eyes and his head darted to his left in attention to face the man.

"Yes, everything is fine, Houen. But less of a guest than patrolman to protect the actual guests, and, more importantly, yourself. Thank you for your consideration, though." Himitsu had avoided using formalities such as titles and the such, they just weren't his style, but he hoped he hadn't offended the noble with his lack of "manners" as the more arrogant aristocrats preferred to call it, though Himitsu knew in reality that he was just straight-forward. However, he was surprised to see the man approach him, especially to refer to the Fourth Seat as a guest? It showed Himitsu that Houen Karakiri was most definitely a kind-hearted man, and Himitsu was happy to know that he was serving him that night. It made him all the more determined to ensure that nothing bad happened, though the fact that there were several more powerful Shinigami present foreshadowed some sort of potential for disaster. He had hoped it wouldn't come to that, but it was nice knowing that they had enough man power to deal with unexpected and unwelcome surprises.

However, before Karakiri had the chance to turn away and leave Himitsu to his duties again, the Shinigami quickly spoke up in almost a rush. "Uh, Houen, if you don't mind, may you please send Sozen Kuchiki my thanks?" His smile remained uniform and consistent, but in truth, Himitsu was slightly nervous. He wasn't sure how Karakiri would reply, and, even more importantly, how Sozen would react. The Captain probably doesn't even remember the lost spirit Himitsu used to be when he first arrived at Soul Society, but Himitsu felt like he had owed the man his gratitude. He would have to do so in person at some point, but, for now, having Karakiri act as a messenger would be fine as well.

[Kento Waffles]

OOC: It'll be wasteful to have me socially respond to just one at a time. Have Raion post next, and then I'll post. Let's keep this thread a bit faster than Zou's. ;P

[Raion Souretsu]

“You certainly can drink a lot, can't you?”

Raion turned to find a thin young woman addressing him, dressed for the party. Eyes roamed briefly over her form, but she wasn't much to the lion's appeal; her clothes hid everything, gave no hints or suggestions or peeks, she seemed to have her nose perpetually turned up at him, despite the fact that he was taller than her by a fair margin, causing her to just look up at him. Overall, the lion's first impression was that he did not like this woman, simply from the way she acted. And to make it worse... she brought up liver failure. Raion had a keen sense for locating doctors simply from the things they said, and there was no doubt in his mind, once this woman started harping on his health, that she was the very thing he feared.

Normally, Raion acted in anger when it came to medics. Many got the rough side of the lion's tongue—metaphorically speaking of course, his whole tongue was rough in actuality—when it came to people who were overly nosy about someone else's health. After all, Raion hadn't changed his drinking habits in nearly five centuries, at least in terms of reducing the quantity he imbibed. If anything, he had started drinking more over the last century and a half, and he felt better than ever! If five centuries of heavy drinking wasn't enough to convince Squad 4 that he could handle his liquor better than they could ever expect, he wasn't sure what would. But yeah, for the most part people who came up to Raion about his health tended to get a negative reaction.

Fortunately for the young woman, that spark of anger triggered a memory for Raion, and he remembered why he was at the party; he had been summoned to serve as security. Well, that counted as a wedding guest, right? Too bad he wasn't the Father of the Bride, though. A mischievous grin crossed his muzzle as a plan came to mind, an expression that would cause anyone who knew the lion to back away, as it usually led to a bad idea. If he was to be security, well... “I'm sorry, m'am, but you've proven yerself to be a threat to the security and peace o' the party—” That much was technically true; setting off Raion was very likely to turn a party into a catastrophe, “So I'm afraid yer gonna have to leave. If you'll come with me?”

Of course, the question wasn't much of a question as much as it was a command, and one of Raion's large paws pressed into the woman's back as he nudged her towards the door. Their host might not appreciate his guests being forced out for their profession, whether it was real or all in the lion's mind, but he was determined to get this doctor out of the party so that he could go back to enjoying himself. Surely with the woman gone, Raion would be able to get back to reading his magazine in peace. After all, he was only halfway through the article, and he certainly wanted to know about his brother's bag-lady ways...

[Kento Waffles]

"Ah, excuse me," the man next to Keji suddenly said, noticing the situation unfolding between Raion and the black haired woman. It was only a second or two later that Raion would find a man with kindly eyes and a warm smile had come upon him. A large, warm hand was placed on the lion's arm, and the newcomer came in between Raion and the woman. From behind his rectangular frame glasses, the man who had only seconds previously been speaking to Keji was now next to Raion instead, and was insistently in between the lion Soul Reaper and the party guest that must surely be a doctor due to a mention of lung cancer, even if it had actually been more of a sadistic joke than any kind of diagnosis. Human doctors couldn't diagnose lions, after all.

"I suspect that Lord Karakiri would not take well to one of his guests being escorted out for so trivial a thing," the man said to Raion. "Perhaps there is a manner in which we can resolve this quietly with words, and not actions." The man with glasses was tall. Since Raion was a lion, or goat depending on who you believe, the human male was definitely nowhere near the lion's height, which was probably why the hand had been placed on Raion's arm instead of on Raion's shoulder. However, the man was pretty tall, at least up to six feet, meeting human standards of fair height. He also could not be simply pushed aside by Raion, indicating that he had some sort of beyond average physical strength. Well, all parties had interesting people.

A servant or butler of some kind in a black tuxedo with red bow tie showed up next to Himitsu after Houen Karakiri left him to go ensure that Sozen Kuchiki received his thanks. The butler was holding a shiny silver tray with a few glasses of some sort of golden liquid, and actually went up to Himitsu instead of simply coincidentally appearing next to him. The tuxedo butler was actually taller than Himitsu was, and had a bald cranium and longish, gaunt face, with a thin pencil mustache. The look on his face might be a bit reminiscent of a cat fish or something. He had come with numerous glasses of champagne, though, and so naturally one expected him to not be so much snobby as aristocratic, elite, and of character of serving drinks.

"Would you care for some wine, sir?" the butler asked Himitsu courteously. His eyes never met with Himitsu's, but the same could be said of all of the servants. They kept their noses pointed upward, and none of them ever locked eyes with any of the guests. It was a very French cultural practice. They were professionals, not there to entertain, but there to please with their line of work. Judging by the fact that they all wore suits or tuxedos, but different outfits, it was evident that they did not have a standard uniform. Instead, they had probably purchased their own clothes, meaning, judging by how expensive each outfit on each servant was, they were all very well paid for mere servants and butlers.

[Kento Waffles]

OOC: Skip Keji, we're gonna go on. Himitsu is up.

[Himitsu Kasumi'Oji]

Himitsu was growing a little more tireless than he had been earlier. Just after Karakiri had left the Fourth Seat, he had become quite bored and ill entertained. Not that he had expected this assignment to keep him amused. But watching nobles talk and laugh over things Himitsu didn’t find even slightly humorous got dull really quickly. The giant did appreciate witty puns, but there was nothing comical or clever about the ornamental compliments these nobles tossed each other and over which they exchanged laughter.

The Shinigami’s mind had been brought back from its aimless straying once again as one of the many butlers that had been tending to the party’s guests had approached him. Feeling slightly guilty about his lack of focus while he is on guard duty, he straightened his more relaxed posture and flashed the man an uncertain grin, not even attempting to hide the fact that he had been daydreaming. The gesture was not returned. Not even close really. The butler kept his gaze up while he addressed the Shinigami, and his tone was if possible even more arrogant than that of the aristocrats socializing at the wedding.

But Himitsu maintained his cheerful expression as well as he always does. “No need to address me as sir,” the Fourth Seat began in his usual amiable tone. The young giant of a man was no more of a sir than any other person in the wedding, though, unlike them, he didn’t believe he was any more superior than the average man in order to deserve the heading. The Butler seemed to have different beliefs and Himitsu wouldn’t have been surprised if he continued with his more pretentious attitude. “I’ll pass on the wine, but thanks.” Himitsu figured it wouldn’t be the smartest decision to cloud his judgment with alcohol while he was on duty. As tempting as it was, the Shinigami was forced to decline the butler’s offer. Though he made a mental note to himself to be dug up in a few hours: Maybe when the wedding’s over and I’m technically off duty, then I can enjoy a few glasses of wine.

[Keji Sokudo]

Keji was exploring the party. Wandering around discretely spying on the guests, making sure there was no trouble. Normally this many people would make Keji notably uncomfortable, but it seemed most of the guests were content to pay attention to the party, and were not on the lookout for strange reshi moving around in the shadows.

It took him a good ten minutes to realize that one of his compatriots was attempting to start a conversation with his gigai, while keji had actually been moving around the party, it must have appeared to be a total lack of attention to anyone who didn't know his secret.

He was ashamed.

Flustered by his lack of attention, How could I be so stupid, keji suddenly blurted out to no one in particular, "ITS A MYSTERY WHY ANYONE WOULD CONSUME SO MUCH!", then realizing his conversation partner had long since moved on to other activites, quickly became even more embarrassed.

He moved off into the party, searching for the bespectacled man, hoping to apologize for his inattention.

[Kento Waffles]

"Well aren't you cute," someone said to Keji next to the Gigai. "Has the alcohol gotten to you already, dear?" It wasn't the same speaker as before, for that man had already gone off to intervene with Raion and the young woman in the black ponytail braid. Instead, this new speaker, a man, stood before Keji with a bald head, dark skin, and a some sort of chain pendant around his neck the end of which was hidden beneath his outfit, which, like the other party guests, was a tuxedo. His was white, and possessed on the front pocket a red rose. Well, okay, there were just way too many guests at this party. At this point, it was just random conversation stops and introduction after introduction. Too many side characters? Not to worry.

"Don't be bashful, honey!" the bald man insisted to Keji. "Whatever you feel now, I guarantee that it will be overshadowed by the next few minutes." As he said this, he nodded to what was around. The groomsmen were beginning to gather around, and the groom himself had finally settled down in one place. This was probably indication that the bride was going to arrive soon, and the actual wedding ceremony would start. It couldn't be all that bad if a wedding was going to start, because this meant that soon they would also serve wedding cake, and only a true and uneducated fool would refuse their designated slice of wedding cake. Who doesn't love wedding cake? It's the whole point of attending any wedding.

Well, after that happened, and everyone began moving, the guards who were the Soul Reapers ended up being bumped around, except Raion, lucky goat. He managed to stay undisturbed in his situation, though Keji was moved, separated from the bald one, and Himitsu was moved near a conversation taking place between Sozen and some nobles. The nobles were chuckling, but Sozen's voice had become serious, and he was talking about something to them, telling a story. "I defeated the Stern Ritter because of his overconfidence," Sozen told the nobles around him. "However, defeating a lone Quincy does not make us safe. That is why I am here at this wedding. Not only as a guest to Lord Karakiri, but to ensure that nothing goes horribly wrong because of more potential Quincy."

"I don't feel so good..." someone groaned, falling onto Himitsu's shoulders, arm draped around the seated Soul Reaper. The not feel gooder had breath which wreaked of whiskey, and something else which was not identifiable. It might seem at first like a regular drunk person, but upon any further inspection at all, Himitsu would find something truly disturbing. The man had no pulse once he fell onto Himitsu, eyes closed. Not only did he have no pulse, but his veins were beginning to show in his face and hands with much clarity, as if he was becoming translucent. The worst part was that while Himitsu had this man draped around his shoulders, no one else in the room seemed to notice.